Overview
- Greece’s parliament voted on Thursday to remove parliamentary immunity from Dimitris Avramopoulos, allowing foreign prosecutors to seek his arrest or extradition.
- A European arrest warrant issued in June accuses Avramopoulos of membership in a criminal organisation, bribery and money laundering and alleges he received about €73,000 linked to the NGO Fight Impunity.
- Avramopoulos denies any wrongdoing, says his work for Fight Impunity was lawful and audited, and has said he will cooperate with Belgian authorities and appear voluntarily.
- The Qatargate probe began with December 2022 raids in Brussels that seized roughly €1.5 million in cash and led to arrests of intermediaries including Pier Antonio Panzeri, who has struck a plea deal with prosecutors.
- With immunity lifted, Belgian authorities can move forward but the case still faces procedural delays in Belgium and the development could intensify scrutiny of NGOs and political ties for Avramopoulos and his New Democracy party.